Signed and Sealed
by Lacus Yamato
Summary: Voltaire once said "Each player must accept the cards life deals him or her: but once they are in hand, he or she alone must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game" but he forgot to mention that in this game, love and lies intertwine and vengeance is always looming. Who to believe? AU
1. Chapter 1

**Hello Everyone! **

**It's nice to be back after quite some time ^_^ Sorry! School has been so busy! I just recently finished my first year of University and finally have some time! (Yay) Anyway while "studying" for finals this idea of a new story popped into my head so I thought I might run with it and see what happens. **

**I****n other news: Tomorrow I will be updating "Never Mess With Me!" and continue editing the previous chapters!**

**Thank you so much dear readers for sticking around! Now on to the story!**

**Signed and Sealed **

**Summary: Voltaire once said "Each player must accept the cards life deals him or her: but once they are in hand, he or she alone must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game" but he forgot to mention that in this game, love and lies intertwine and vengeance is always looming. Who to believe? AU**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Seed/Destiny or the characters! Any references made shall be cited at the end of the chapters! **

**Chapter 1**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

It was loud, the atmosphere was boisterous and Athrun Zala was soaking up every moment of it. Ah, life was good for the twenty eight year old CEO of Infinite Productions, a Fortune 500 Company. He started out dwelling in the software market and then grew after graduating University. After combining his business with his father's company, his empire grew as well as did his connections and reputation. It was also well known that Athrun Zala was quite ruthless in the boardroom and—scandalous in the bedroom. What with his soft blue hair and striking emerald eyes, it was suffice to say that he was _extremely_ easy on the eyes.

"Athrun!" a friendly voice called over the excitement of the club.

Turning, Athrun saw as his best friend approached the private booth of the club that he had occupied.

"Geez, took you a long time Kira" Athrun laughed standing up to clap his friend on the back "The others are waiting for us down by the bar. Ready to party?"

Kira grinned "You know it."

Kira Yamato, just like Athrun Zala was quite the ladies man. Deep amethyst eyes and silky soft hair, he also had his fair share of tryst and women coming after him. He was also the CEO of Archangel Systems, a medical engineering firm. He owned everything from hospitals to major shares in pharmaceutical companies.

Ordering the first round of drinks Kira and Athrun clinked their glasses in a toast "To a successful deal!" Athrun cheered "Now all that's waiting is for it to be signed and sealed!"

"I'll drink to that!"

"Ah," Athrun sighed happily "I'm so getting plastered tonight!"

The two had successfully convince Eileen Canavar of PLANTS Corp., to join them in an alliance. PLANTS Corp., was a big dealer in resources, this had been the golden deal for the two boys. In their eyes it was a win-win situation, Kira would gain a partner for materials needed for his hospitals and pharmacy labs, Athrun would gain distribution channels and a way into the markets in Asia, while PLANTS would be guaranteed financial support.

There was no way anyone would pass up this deal and there was no way anyone could lose.

"It's a deal made in corporate heaven" Kira dubbed, throwing back another drink.

Athrun grinned eyeing a cute blonde on the other side "Exactly, nothing can go wrong."

* * *

"The fuck you say?" Athrun bellowed, slamming both hands hard on the table. Kira held and impassive face but the other occupants in the room could tell he was fuming by watching the dangerous flicker in his eyes.

Well that news certainly sobered them up, after a night of partying and alcohol and lack of sleep this news couldn't come at a worse time.

"What do they want? More money? We already had offered them a highly generous amount" Kira said, his voice flat, devoid of any emotion "And on top of all that she would be in an alliance with both Infinite Productions and Archangel Systems."

Dearka Elsman sighed loudly and rubbed his forehead, he hadn't had much sleep last night and now to find out this mess. "Look" he said tiredly "All I know is that the PLANTS deal is off, with President Canaver stating that she had found a better last minute offer."

"A _better_ deal?" Athrun choked out, disbelief colouring his voice "What the hell do you mean by a better deal? Do you know how many nights we spent trying to iron out this freaking _perfect_, godly deal and she has the nerve to say that she found a better deal?"

Kira sighed closing his eyes for a second "Athrun, calm down" opening his eyes he looked at his friend "I'm as angry as you are but getting hyper and upset like this won't solve anything."

Taking in a deep breath the young CEO knew this friend was right, a high blood pressure was the last thing he needed.

"Who could it be?" Nicol Amalfi—the head accountant—wondered aloud "That last minute offer, who could have offered a better deal than ours" he clarified.

Athrun felt a searing heat of anger flow through his veins again as he thought of possible companies capable of doing this "Was it Alliance Limited? Or ORB Corporations?"

Kira frowned "Not possible. The Alliance is nearing bankrupt and a change of management, a deal like this would be simply too risky and above all really stupid at the moment for them."

"Then what about ORB?" Athrun asked.

The brunet hesitated for a second "While it's not highly _impossible_, there's a good chance it's _improbable—_"

The door swung open revealing a pretty brunette and a silver haired man; urgency reflected with every step "I've got news boys" Murrue said grimly "And you're not going to like it."

"If it's about the deal being called off we already know that Yzak" Dearka said lazily, leaning back.

The silver haired man, glared at him "Fuck off Dearka this is no time for your jokes or foolishness."

"In a foul mood as ever I see."

Ignoring both of them Murrue placed a bottle of Advil on the table and watched the boys fight for the bottle.

'That must be some hangover' she thought. Clearing her throat she spoke "I have a report from our investigative team, they've found out who put in the offer to PLANTS."

"Well?" Athrun asked impatiently.

"It was Terminal Incorporated" Yzak said.

The room descended upon silence, shock mirrored on everyone's face.

* * *

**Dun dun duuuun! :D Wonder what's going to happen next…**

**Thank you for reading! **

**~Lacus Yamato **


	2. Chapter 2

**I have to admit this chapter was quite fun to write~ **

**Thank you to everyone who followed and reviewed! It make me so happy I really appreciate it!**

**Lenora Jime: Voltaire is a famous French philosopher, for one of my history projects my friend and I had to study a few of his works and his bio. During the project I came across this quote and really liked it! Thank you very much for your review! **

**Nina: Thank you very much for the review and for correcting me about the brunet/te thing! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Seed/Destiny or the characters! Any references made shall be cited at the end of the chapters! **

**Enjoy Chapter 2!**

* * *

**_Click. Clack. Click. Clack. _**

She hummed in tune with her fast walk, every morning the young girl was all smiles but today she beamed just a bit brighter.

Entering the lobby of the huge building she made her way to the elevator and pressed the twelfth floor. When the elevator reached her floor she was greeted with a clean, warm and comforting reception area. While most companies she knew tried to make their offices as cold and as intimidating as possible, she preferred bright, openness and banked on the view of the city to warm up clients and business prospective.

"Good morning Stellar!" she greeted walking over to the receptionist. Stellar Louisser was a good friend from high school, she had twinkly violet eyes and short blonde hair. Though she appeared to be childlike and airheaded, Stellar was actually quick witted and very smart.

Stellar grinned mischievously propping her elbows on the desk and leaned forward "Good morning Miss. CEO. The deal is signed and sealed."

Signed and sealed.

Those words were music to the young twenty seven year old.

Cocking her head in the direction of the office Stellar whispered dramatically "You'd better hurry boss, Lady Law is just brimming with victory and awaits your presence."

The CEO nodded and headed to her office. As she opened the door, her big office chair swung around and a smug blonde sat in it proudly, hands behind her head and feet propped up on the desk. Her amber eyes shone with excitement. Cagalli Yula Athha, or Lady Law as her friends called her was the head lawyer for Terminal Inc., she was the perfect personification of a lion. Heated amber eyes and wild short blonde mane, she radiated with power and stubbornness.

"We've done it Lacus! We've secured the PLANTS deal!" Reaching to the ground she picked up a package of papers and threw it into Lacus's arms.

Lacus Clyne was the CEO of Terminal Incorporate, after taking over the company from her father five years ago due to his health, the company boomed and soon was listed as a fortune 500 company. She had winter pink hair that stopped a little past her shoulders and sparkly blue eyes. She was epitome of innocence, something that competitors and opposition tried to use against her, but learned the devastating consequences that she was far more intelligent and ruthless then she looked.

"Oh this is amazing!" Lacus cheered rushing over and hugged Cagalli "It's all because of you, Shinn and Stellar's hard work!"

"Psh, nonsense Lacus" the blonde smiled "It was both of our hard work, you were the one who thought of the deal. I just took care of the legal stuff."

"This calls for a celebration wouldn't you say?" a happy voice came from the door. Spinning around Lacus saw her last star player enter the office.

"My fair ladies" he grinned bowing with mock regality. Shinn Asuka was a driven person, if he put his mind to it he could do anything. His crimson eyes which had the power to making even the toughest man flinch was filled with joy and passion. Lacus reached out and tried to smooth his unruly raven hair to no avail.

Clutching her heart Cagalli made her voice go a few octaves higher "My hero."

Shinn snorted at his cousin's antics "Damn straight, if it wasn't for my charm we would have never gotten the deal."

The blonde rolled her eyes "Charm? Please. The only productive thing you did was bring me coffee and food."

Lacus giggled "Now, now you two, both of you worked endlessly to seal this deal. How about we go out for dinner? My treat!"

Cagalli nodded happily, and Shinn was thoughtful for a moment, Lacus threw him a curious look before he spoke, "I'm tired with all this rich restaurant food or fast food. How about we have dinner at your place? We can all cook there."

The pink haired girl nodded eagerly "That's a great idea! How's Friday? Tonight we have to wine and dine with Ms. Canaver, in celebration for the deal."

Cagalli grinned looking at her cousin "You just want to eat Lacus' food, not that I can blame you though it's like a piece of heaven in every bite."

Lacus blushed lightly "Oh hush."

"Stop being so humble" Stellar exclaimed walking in, folders in hand "Now people, sorry to be the party crasher here but we still have work to do."

* * *

"You're shitting me" Athrun said in disbelief, the shock started to wear out "Terminal?"

Kira blanched and prayed that his twin and twat cousin didn't have anything to do with this.

'But how could they?' he mused, he hadn't told anybody about the deal 'There's only one way to find out' he sighed and made a mental note to _personally_ visit his relatives, 'they'd _better_ not be a part of this' he thought darkly or there'd be hell to pay.

"Terminal?" Athrun echoed again, this wasn't possible! He couldn't make sense of this "Siegel Clyne would never be this cunning or smart enough to pull something off like this."

Murrue fold her arms over her chest "If memory serves me right, Siegel Clyne stepped down due to medical reasons and gave his daughter to take over…oh five years ago I think it was."

"What? Five years ago? How come I've only just heard about it?"

Murrue shrugged "It was all hush hush, they even kept out of our radar during that time."

"Hm" Nicol did a quick search on his laptop and gasped in surprise "They rank number 20! Dealing with $104.5 billion dollars in revenue last year! And get this" he said scanning the screen "within the last five years they've jumped up almost a hundred spots up the list!"

Athrun stood up and rushed to gather his things into his bag, "Alright then, I'm going to visit President Canaver and see to it myself as to why she declined our deal. Dearka you're coming with me, Yzak dig deeper into Terminal and see what you can uncover. Kira do you have a free moment to come to PLANTS Corp., with me?"

Taking out his BlackBerry said boy scanned his schedule and sighed nosily "Sorry man, I'm meeting with the head of PharmaCorp in two hours. I can't reschedule this."

Nodding understandingly Athrun left the room barking at his secretary to cancel all of his meetings for the day.

* * *

**Wow, bet you didn't expect that! **

**Please review, and thanks for reading! **

**~Lacus Yamato**


	3. Chapter 3

**I know that a few of you are questioning the reason as to Kira and Cagalli's different last name and relation, but rest assure that it shall be explained soon! Thank you to everyone who reviewed and followed/favourite! It really makes my day! **

**Enjoy Chapter 3!**

* * *

Athrun mentally prepped himself for battle as he ascended the steps of the PLANTS office building. He was beyond furious that Eileen Canaver had the gal to flat out reject his offer last minute without an explanation.

'Who does she think she is?' he growled mentally as he rode the elevator up to her floor. Offering a drop-dead gorgeous smile the blue haired man managed to persuade her secretary to schedule a meeting within the hour. Instead of bringing Dearka like he originally planned he decided just to confront the President of PLANTS.

Mano e mano…er mano e woman…

Whatever, businessman to businesswoman.

* * *

"You offered me _support_, not _security_" Eileen Canaver said folding her fingers together and placed her hands on her desk. She looked very diplomatic like, Athrun noted.

'Great' he thought fighting the urge to roll his eyes.

Taking a breath he spoke as politely and professionally as possible "I assure you Ms. Canaver that you would have gained the security needed in this partnership."

She smiled rueful and Athrun felt uneasy "I would have _gained_ security, you didn't _guarantee _it. With the way the economy is now I can't afford to deal with too many risks, surely you as a businessman should be able to comprehend that."

Athrun's eyes turned cold 'She's mocking me' he thought, trying to reign in his anger.

Not in the mood to play any games the owner of Infinite opted for a more direct approach "What did Terminal offer you? Surely as a businesswoman you, Ms. Canaver, would understand that in this economy while doing decently fair, your finances are still not that good."

The woman looked surprised at his speech.

'Good' Athrun thought sourly but did not stop there "And also in this shaky, turbulent economy as a _successful _bussiness_woman_, you would be wise to know that overnight you can go from riches to rags from being too _vain_ and _avaricious_. It would also help your cause to have a good partner for support."

Her cheeks had flushed red with the thinly veiled insults "I think you need to leave now Mr. Zala" Eileen said frostily.

"Very well then," promptly standing up, he casted her a sardonically sweet smile "it _was_ nice doing business with you Ms. Canaver" and with that the man strode out of her office with one thought in mind:

This. Means. War.

* * *

"Wow," Cagalli looked at Stellar and nudged her playfully "Who'd you have to kill to get us a spot like this?"

By 'this', Lady Law meant the venue for their celebration dinner tonight. They got a private room with the view of the city skyline. The inky twilight sky mixed in with the glow of the city downtown core set the joyous mood for the group.

It was indeed an amazing feat especially for a last minute booking.

Stellar beamed proudly "Well it wasn't easy let me tell you."

"Excellent work as usual Stellar" Lacus smiled walking in the room. She was wearing a sleeveless, close-fitting knee length purple cocktail dress. The dress was simple yet elegant with the left strapped shaped as a bow and the right strap a jagged design.

"Lacus!" Stellar squealed "You look amazing! I _told_ you that dress was perfect!"

The pink haired girl smiled shyly "Thank you, and you both look awesome as well."

Stella donned a pink a line dress with a jeweled belt on the waist. At Stella and Lacus' nagging, Cagalli wore a short mint green wrap dress and flats.

Looping her arms with her friends arms Lacus pulled them to the big window, "Isn't it beautiful" she sighed happily.

"Surely the view is not as beautiful as me?"

Cagalli rolled her eyes and crossed her arms at the man who just entered the room "Really Shinn?"

* * *

Promptly at seven Eileen Canaver arrived, and the group ordered their drinks and appetizers. Eileen felt confident in choosing Terminal over Infinite and Archangel, even more so after seeing how Clyne and her team were compared to Zala and his.

Lacus lifted her fork and knife then slowly put it down as an important thought came to her mind "I heard the CEO of Infinite contacted you today?"

"Yes, it seems that Zala did not take the news quite well" Eileen said taking a sip of her wine "He even had the nerve to waltz into my office without booking a prior appointment and demand a reason why I didn't partner up with him".

"Oh my" Lacus exclaimed sympathetically.

Cagalli wiped her mouth before speaking "What a brat" she reached for her glass, and swirled the wine around. "He probably thought that his deal was a god given deal and that no one would have offered any better. What a joke."

"Not that surprising though" Shinn put in "I mean that deal would have been highly beneficial to Infinite and Archangel but the remunerations and rewards were not mutual for PLANTS. If anything I'd say you would have been the losers."

Stellar made an undistinguishable noise and kicked Shinn in the shin, "No offense" he added quickly.

Eileen nodded "Anyway, Zala is the past and this is our future."

Lacus nodded "Agreed" she said lifting her glass "To our bright future. Let's all work hard and succeed!"

* * *

Kira didn't leave his office till ten that evening. There was so much paper work and everyone kept on coming to him for answers about the broken deal.

"Like I have all the answers" he snorted entering his apartment and rolled his shoulders. His back was so stiff. He was tired and worked to the bone, all he wanted was a nice hot shower and some much needed sleep.

As tired as he was, the man was also very annoyed, in between meetings or when he had a few seconds to spare he tried to get a hold of Cagalli and Shinn. To further fuel his annoyance and suspicions they _both_ didn't pick up their cellphones and_ both_ were out of their office for most of the day.

His phone vibrated, Flay was calling "Not again" he groaned slamming his finger on the ignore button.

Another thing that had set him off was the conversation he had when his best friend came back from his meeting with PLANTS President. Athrun had told him that Eileen Canaver underestimated them and thought that they were inadequate.

His phone vibrated again, it was Flay.

"Damn woman," he blew out a tired breath "what the hell does she possibly want at this time?"

Going to his room he put his phone on "night mode" and tossed it on the bed.

Time for that well needed and undisrupted shower. Tomorrow he would deal with Terminal and PLANTS.

_And_ Cagalli and Shinn.

And whoever the hell Clyne's daughter was.

* * *

A muffled screech echoed, Lacus looked up from her document she was viewing. A puzzled expression on her face. She had been hearing this weird sound from the last five minutes.

"I want to speak with her!"

Stellar sent the girl a hard look "I'm sorry but—"

"Now!"

Lacus stepped out of her office concerned about the commotion going outside in the reception area "Is something the matter?"

The red head turned and critically eyed the pink haired girl, 'She's nothing special' she thought watching Lacus's outfit. Her hair was in a high bun and glasses perched on her nose, she wore a simple light pink blouse and pencil skirt. Her heels were abandoned and was simply in her stocking clad feet.

"Tsk, so unprofessional."

Lacus' eyes widened "_Excuse me?_" she looked at the girl and vaguely recognized her. She was Flay Allster the daughter of the President of Alliance Corp.

'I wonder what she's doing here?' the pink haired girl mused for a second.

"What's going on here?" Cagalli bellowed storming down the hall, seeing Flay the blonde knew she was the cause of the trouble "Oh it's you. Well? What do you want? I didn't think you'd be dumb enough to come here thinking it was Kira's office."

Lacus felt a wave of distrust wash through her as she saw the red head approach her.

"What did you do?" Flay demanded "Fix this mess you made! Kira has been in such a bad mood after your little stunt. He was so hurt—"

Cagalli chortled "What! Hurt? Oh my god wait till Shinn hears this."

Flay glared at her and ignored her "—so hurt, my daddy had to tell me because he wouldn't! How could you do that? He worked so hard on this deal!"

Lacus narrowed her eyebrows "And we didn't? Ms. Flay if what you say is true—"

Cagalli snorted, without missing a beat Lacus continued.

"—then he should simply not be in business. Especially not if he sends someone like you to barge into my office and disturb the peace."

Flay gasped taking a step in Lacus' comfort zone, her hands were clenched and her face flushed in anger "You bitch!"

"Well" Lacus drawled smoothening out her skirt then smiled "it takes one to know one. Now get out before I call security on you."

* * *

**Thanks for reading!**

**~Lacus Yamato ^_^ **


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry for the delay! Either tomorrow or on Thursday I shall be posting Chapter 5! (Hopefully) Thank you to everyone who reviewed! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Seed/Destiny or the characters! Any references made shall be cited at the end of the chapters! **

**Enjoy Chapter 4!**

* * *

Shinn clutched his stomach and roared with laughter "Oh my god, that's rich. He was 'hurt'. Why was I not there?" he asked, his ruby eyes ablaze with joy.

Lacus giggled enjoying her friends' amusement. When the light, happy atmosphere faded she frowned "Well, that certainly was rude of her to come here and make such demands and accusations."

"That's Flay for you" Shinn snorted "Self-righteous, greedy, and must always have her way. I don't even think anyone has ever told her no."

Lacus folded her arms and leaned against the wall looking out the window "If power or desire is all you have, then you have nothing."

Even voiced eloquently her message was clear. Silence enveloped the office, Lacus bit her lip before hesitantly speaking again "You don't think your cousin actually sent her."

"What!" Shinn exclaimed jumping up "No way! If anything I bet Kira doesn't know about this."

Cagalli agreed standing up, she grabbed her purse muttering "I'm going to talk to that idiot."

"Where are you going?" Shinn asked getting up from his seat.

"Lacus, I'm going to take an early lunch" The blonde smiled brightly "Lady Law is going to lay down the law."

Lacus nodded while Shinn grinned evilly, this was going to be good "Oh can I come too? You know" he shrugged "just in case you need backup."

* * *

"Well Cagalli, Shinn" Kira drawled "nice to see you two. I haven't heard from you two in a while."

His office was dark and a bit dreary in Cagalli's opinion. Her twin brother sat upright behind a massive desk, an impassive look on his face. To anyone else it would be intimidating and a bit nerve-racking to be in here. Everything was strategically placed, Cagalli thought that this office wasn't right for Kira who was a normally open and far from scary person. Kira had told her stories of how prominent businessmen could be reduced to nothing once they entered his office.

"Cut the niceties Yamato!" Cagalli slammed the palms of her hands on his desk "Tell me why that demon you call girlfriend showed up at our office and started verbally harassing us."

Kira looked taken aback, and sat up straight "Wait, what? Flay?"

"Yeah and she kept on wailing your name, which makes you affiliated with her and also as likely to get in trouble should we decide to press charges on your asses."

The brunet looked at his sister with a deadpanned expression "You're not serious."

Shinn sat down on the side of Kira's desk "Sorry to break it to you mate, but apparently and I quote she said" he cleared his throat to make his voice high pitched "'My poor Kira is _so hurt_ because of you people! You took his deal and how _he's absolutely heartbroken _and _devastated_.' Come now Kira, I never knew you were so…" pausing to find the right word Shinn smirked "delicate."

Kira scowled at him "Screw off Shinn, I didn't know anything. How could she even know? I didn't tell her anything."

"Lucky for you we believe you" Cagalli sniffed walking around his desk to open the blinds "What are you a vampire or something? Open these damn blinds once in a while!"

Kira ignored her and groaned what was Flay doing now? Pissing off Cagalli on her turf would do more damage than anything. Honestly, that was a huge mistake. Cagalli didn't even _like _Flay or accepted that they were together and now challenging the Lioness on her territory was nothing short of a death sentence.

The CEO glanced at his raven haired cousin who had an amused smirk on his face 'No wonder Shinn was enjoying himself, the bastard' Kira thought darkly.

"Anyways," Cagalli waved her hand as a sign to drop the topic "are you coming to the barbeque this Saturday?"

Kira smiled wearily "Mom would kill me if I didn't."

"Kill wouldn't even cover it" Shinn laughed, pulling out his phone, "Shit! Cagalli we have to hurry I got a meeting soon! I'll go get the car. Later Bro."

Cagalli nodded, casting one last look at Kira she frowned then shook her head "See you later Kira!" she winked, as she left the brunet's office.

"Yeah" he replied distractedly caught up with his thoughts. A moment later he stood up in a rush "Damn it!" he forgot to ask Cagalli and Shinn if they were a part of the Terminal deal! He had the perfect opportunity! He couldn't ask them on the weekend because Cagalli and his mother had a no-discussion-about-work policy. He'd rather keep quiet and die of suspense then face his mother's wrath.

* * *

In a somewhat better mood Cagalli left Kira's office and headed to the elevators, her mind was buzzing like a beehive. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice the elevator she entered was not empty until the elevator doors closed and she was suffocated by a heavy presence.

Looking around she was startled by a pair of dark emerald eyes, the man beside her was tall. He oozed of power, money and arrogance. He was looking very intently at her, and that didn't sit right with Cagalli. Cocking a delicate eyebrow up, she shot him a daring look. He was not fazed.

'How interesting' the blonde thought.

The elevator had finally reached the ground level and Cagalli exited, noticing the man behind her just stayed in the elevator.

"Weirdo" she muttered leaving the building.

* * *

"Miriallia! Hey girl!" Cagalli waved at the auburn haired women who approached her at the entrance of the bar.

Lacus had a last minute Skype conference call and had to cancel on their dinner plans, so Cagalli had made new arrangements with Miriallia "Miri" Haw. Miriallia owned a studio downtown and was also a part time freelance photographer.

"Cagalli! How is everything? Are Kira and Shinn doing well?"

"Shinn is like he is on top of the world, while Kira looks like he's duking it out with Hades in the Underworld" Cagalli laughed remembering her encounter with her twin early in the week.

"He's still the same, nothing has changed" Miri giggled "He's overworking himself I see. And Lacus? I have to call her and congratulate her on the deal" the auburn girl said thoughtfully as the pair walked into the restaurant and straight to the bar.

"She's well, however she's buried under a pile of paperwork that she's been continually putting off."

"Oh yes, Miss. Procrastinator Perfectionist, you would have thought that by now she would have changed that habit" Miri clucked her tongue remembering the many late nights she spent with the pink haired girl trying to iron out an essay due the next morning.

Cagalli suddenly turned around in her seat, her eyes scanning the area, she had a feeling someone was staring at her, shrugging she brushed it off as her imagination.

"Oh yeah! Did I tell you about this weirdo at Kira's building?" the blonde asked.

Miriallia gasped "No! What happened?"

Lady Law retold her encounter with the navy haired lad.

The bar started buzzing eccentrically.

Miri glanced at the doorway to see what the commotion was about and gasped "Say, Cagalli, that man you talked about, was he like a walking Adonis? Striking emerald eyes and blue hair?"

Cagalli shrugged "Yeah, he was good looking why?"

"Don't you know who that guy is?" Miri questioned cocking her head to a familiar looking blue haired man.

Cagalli quirked her eyebrows together, he did look familiar "No, should I?"

"Geez!" Miri slapped her hand to her forehead "It's the CEO of Infinite, Athrun Zala!"

"Oh" the blonde replied lamely, still eyeing the man. As if sensing her looking at him, he turned around and winked at the girl. Cagalli narrowed her eyes at him but he threw her an amused smile.

"You said you've met him before right?" Miri asked cocking her head to the side.

"Not really" Cagalli blew a breath "I just rode the elevator with him, no words were exchanged."

Deciding to drop the subject Miri smiled and told Cagalli about her latest project.

* * *

Athrun watched keenly as the blonde girl smiled. It was the same girl he saw that day in the elevator when he came to see Kira. Back in the elevator she had a stern no-nonsense expression, it was amusing to see a lighter side of her. He wanted to talk to her, that little display of power that day had sent fire through his veins. Tonight he a Dearka had gone out to have a little fun, this week in the office had been hell.

From the corner of his eye, Athrun saw the blonde's friend move and leave, now was his chance.

"Dearka, see that give in the pink shirt, heading to the bathroom try and stall her for a bit I wanna talk to her blonde friend by the bar."

Dearka looked up and his eyes landed on an auburn haired girl whistled "You're lucky she's cute. Where's Kira I thought he was supposed to play wingman?" he asked standing up.

Athrun shrugged "I don't know, he mumbled something about sleep and hung up on me."

Waiting a few seconds, Athrun stood up and squared his shoulders making his way over to the fire eyed beauty.

"Hello there beautiful, can I buy you a drink?"

Cagalli looked up from her phone just in time to see the blue haired man slide onto the stool beside her. Pinning him with a hard glare she said "no" and looked back to her phone.

'That's strange, time for a change of tactic' Athrun thought and smiled easily "I'm sorry I didn't catch your name."

The blonde sniffed "That's because I didn't throw it" she replied still not looking up from her phone.

Athrun opened his mouth to speak but Cagalli cut him off "Look buddy, if you don't remove your ass from within twenty feet of me before I count to five, I'll slap a harassment suit on your ass."

"Wow" Athrun blinked, nobody has told him that before "So you're a lawyer?"

"What'd you think I was? A magician? Dumbass."

Athrun shook his head and laughed "You're pretty interesting."

"One." Cagalli said looking straight ahead 'Geez, where's Miri?' she wondered.

"Can I at least get your number?"

"Two."

"Fine, can I give you my number?"

"Three."

"Can I buy you a drink?"

"Four."

"Fine then I'm leaving. But before can I kiss you?"

Cagalli turned her head and shot his a cross between a scandalous look and a murderous one "Sexual harassment and restraining order, Mr. Athrun Zala."

Athrun smiled cheekily and saluted "Five. I'm gone."

No woman had ever made Athrun offer his number, they usually just gave him theirs. She was interesting he had to admit, a good challenge.

* * *

A soft smile settled upon Kira's face as he entered his home. Judging by the loud screams and laughter that came from the backyard his grinned widened knowing that Cagalli and Shinn had already arrived.

His father had abandoned the three of them when he was eight and his mother had raised him a Cagalli by herself. Two years later, they took Shinn in after his parents had died from a car accident. Ten years later while in university his father returned and offered to give Kira the hospital he owned however, to keep the hospital Kira had to keep his father's last name. Yamato. Cagalli decided to change her name to her mother's maiden name as an act of defiance when Ulen had tried to get back into their lives.

'It was rough back then' he thought trying to push away those memories.

"Kira hurry up! We need you to start the barbeque!" Cagalli called from the backdoor "I don't trust the pyromaniac we call Shinn!"

"Pyromaniac? Oh that's _lovely_ coming from the chick who almost burned down the kitchen!"

"It was an accident! Besides" Cagalli huffed "you and Kira came just in time with the fire extinguisher."

"You were lucky I thought of buying it!"

"Okay you two" Via Athha said silencing the arguing pair. She was a stunning woman, Kira thought proudly as he approached his mother.

"Ah Kira!" she smiled and pulled her son in for an embrace.

"Mom, it's good to see you. How have you been?" he asked returning the embrace.

Via smiled prettily "Good, I'm even better now having my three children all here," she said looking at each of them "now shall we being? You must be starving. Cagalli and Shinn have been trying for the past hour to turn on the barbecue but it's not working."

"I'm on it!" the brunet called pushing aside his twin and cousin and rolled up his sleeves "Alright you two, let me show you how it's done."

* * *

Kira sat lazily on the couch sifting through his emails, it was Sunday afternoon and they had just finished brunch. He glanced over at his cousin who was laying on the love seat watching TV. Was Shinn and Cagalli apart of that major deal? Surly they knew that his company was also involved. Kira groaned looking up at the ceiling as if he'd find an answer up there. He was curious and frustrated. While it was Cagalli's policy not to talk about work that didn't mean that Shinn was out of bounds. After debating for a moment he decided he would ask Shinn of his involvement.

'Now how to approach the topic?' the brunet wondered glancing around to check if the coast was clear.

"Do you know where the hammer is?" Cagalli asked walking into the living room where the boys were.

"I don't know, somewhere in there" Kira pointed vaguely in the general direction of the closet.

Cagalli walked to the closet and dug around "Never mind found it" she called.

"What are you planning on doing?" Shinn asked, his eyes not leaving the TV.

"Bludgeoning someone."

Shinn yawned "Okay."

"Good luck with that" Kira said turning back to his laptop. He heard the screen door open and shut. Five minutes later Cagalli came back inside.

"It's raining. Mission aborted." The blonde sighed as she took a seat next to Kira.

'Yeah' he thought dryly 'for you and me both.'

* * *

**Thank you for reading! **

**-Lacus Yamato**


	5. Chapter 5

**Oh my, this chapter is really late sorry! Like a week late…. ^_^, I'm like a permanent resident of Procrastination . **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed! 3**

**Has anyone ever heard of the song Shining Tears? It's sung by Kira Yamato (Souichiro Hoshi!) Oh my, his voice is so….-sigh- it's Kira singing…**

**Chapter 5 Enjoy!**

* * *

The morning started out cheery and bright for Lacus, she had a strong feeling that today would be a special day—which was a bit surprising considering that it was Monday, her least favourite day.

On Friday just seconds before she left her office she had received a call from Archangel Systems. It was Kira Yamato's personal secretary. She said that Mr. Yamato wanted to have a meeting with her on Monday as it was of the utmost importance. The pink haired girl had tried to explain that Monday she was fully booked but the secretary would not budge, insisting that her boss would show up for an eight o clock appointment.

'He must be crazy' Lacus mused dropping in at her favourite coffee shop, checking the time she was pleased to see that she still had forty-five minutes till the meeting. Half of her wished she hadn't picked up the phone and had just left, 'Can't do anything about it now' she shrugged to herself.

'I wonder what type of person Kira Yamato is' Lacus pondered as she walked to her building, coffee and breakfast in hand.

'From what I can make from Cagalli and Shinn's stories he seems like a decent considerate guy. It seems that they all care about each other dearly' a soft smile coloured her lips 'Must be nice to have a family like that, they never seem to be alone—'

"Ouch" Lacus winced as she hit the ground, she had been too caught up in her thoughts that she didn't see where she was going and bumped into someone hard. She knew it was a person and not a wall because said obstacle cursed aloud.

"I'm very sorry!" Lacus said standing up slowly, her bottom felt sore and legs a bit shaky.

"What the hell was that? Who the hell daydreams while walking!" the man said angrily.

Lacus glanced up at the man, her eyes zeroed in on the coffee that was split all over his shirt. His _white_ shirt.

The pink haired girl felt bad and wanted to fix the situation "Oh my, I'm terribly sorry! Here why don't you send me the bill—"

The man snorted "Whatever it's fine." He paused as if wanting to say something else "Just watch where you're going next time" he said coldly and left.

Lacus frowned, how could today have gone from good to bad in less than a minute?

* * *

Rushing to her office Lacus pulled out a spare set of clothes that she kept for emergencies. Her skin still tingled where the hot coffee had splashed her. She went to change in the washroom and prayed that Mr. Yamato would be in traffic and late to their meeting. In the distance she heard the elevator ding and footsteps.

'He's here!' the girl thought fearfully quickly buttoning up her dress shirt. After quickly inspecting her reflection in the mirror and double checking that the front zipper of her pants was up she left the bathroom.

"Sorry for the delay! I am Lacus Clyne—" Lacus said cheerily walking into the reception area, her steps faltered a little when she saw who was sitting in the chair.

It was as if she had come face to face with a destructive demon. A _sexy_ destructive demon. What caught her off guard the most was his beautiful purple eyes which watched her with a smothering gaze. He was strong she also noted eyeing how his shirt fit him snugly, he seemed to enjoy working out. Lacus' mind briefly went back to their encounter this morning and remembered the hardness of his body.

Hold on, the encounter this morning.

'It's him!' she thought, a feeling of dread wash over her 'Oh dear, _he's_ Kira Yamato?' why hadn't she known earlier? Why had she put off doing research about him like she promised herself she would do during the weekend? How come she didn't pay close attention to the man she bumped into this morning.

'This certainly isn't a good way to start a meeting' she sighed, 'No I cannot allow this to get me down. I'm stronger then that! I shall make a good first um—second impression' mentally Lacus squared her shoulders with renewed confidence.

He looked at her in a condescending way "How unprofessional to show up late."

So much for renewed confidence.

'Looks like his girlfriend's ways has rubbed off on him' Lacus thought bitterly, to be honest she was a bit disappointed. This did not seem like the Kira Yamato she had heard stories about.

Kira noted that her sunny disposition had dropped into a neutral one. She had changed her coffee stained yellow blouse into a light lavender one. Her hair was tied up in a bit haphazardly fashion.

Walking to the receptionists desks Lacus apologized smiling as she leaned over and searched for a file "As I said I'm terribly sorry" turning to him she cocked her head "if you would like, shall we head to the conference room so we can discuss this _utmost important_ issue?"

The brunet nodded and stood up following Lacus down the hall, he stayed a few steps behind so he could study her carefully. She had a nice ass, he had to admit, and seeing her stretch for that file had given him an excellent view of her curves. She was beautiful. But she was also his enemy. Kira reminded himself to be careful, Lacus Clyne was probably another girl like Flay—a snobby socialite. But at the same time his intuition seemed to scream that was negative.

"Can I get you anything to drink?" Lacus asked snapping the man out of his thoughts "Water, tea, coffee…" her eyes widened a bit when she said coffee.

"I'm fine thank you" Kira said taking a seat at the head of the table.

'He's trying to display his power' Lacus thought taking a seat one chair away from him "Alright, now Mr. Yamato what can I do to assist you? Your secretary said that you had a very important issue to discuss."

"Yes, it's about that deal with the PLANTS."

"I see" Lacus replied evenly "However, I have already had a visitor last week, a Miss. Flay Allster, I recall."

Lacus noticed that Kira looked a bit uncomfortable but not that phased so she continued on "She told me that you were quite upset with my business dealings. I do sympathize with you Mr. Yamato however this is business" she looked him straight in the eye "I took a risk much like you and Mr. Zala. There was no guaranteed that Ms. Canaver would even consider my proposal, but lady luck—and Lady Law" Lacus smiled sweetly "were on my side."

Kira had an impassive look on his face, but it wasn't as cold as this morning's, frosty yes but not quite as cold.

'Well that's start' the girl thought optimistically.

Kira was quiet, his suspicions had been confirmed. Lady Law was definitely Cagalli. And if Cagalli was involved Shinn was as well. But now that he had that information what could be done?

"My apologises Miss Clyne, I didn't know that Flay would come here. However now that the deal is done I wish to offer you a proposal of my own."

"Oh?" Lacus cocked her head to the side, this was surprising. 'What is he planning?' she wondered reminding herself to be careful.

"I wish to buy Terminal."

Lacus' facial expression had gone from light and curious to no emotion in less than a second.

"I'm sorry but this we're not for sale."

"Name your price" the brunet pushed.

The girl blinked "Excuse me?"

"Name your price" he simply repeated not batting an eye.

Lacus frowned crossing her arms over her chest a move that did not go unnoticed by the brunet "As I said before: not for sale."

"Final answer?"

"Pardon me?" Lacus threw him a perplexed look.

Kira tossed her a cocky grin, a grin he had perfected over the years, this grin got him anything he wanted "Babe, please."

Now she was upset. Lacus stood up "Alright Mr. Yamato, I think you need to leave. This is over" she said in a commanding voice.

Kira smirked and leaned back in his chair watching her closely. Her cheeks were flushed pink, whether from anger he could not tell, her eyes also did not give him any clues as to what was going through her mind, maybe he could have fun with this "Nah, I think I like the view just fine from here."

Her voice was like steel "That's harassment Mr. Yamato. As I said earlier this is over."

He deadpanned mentally, 'Cagalli had influenced this one' he thought standing up and moved to the door where Lacus was standing.

Kira ducked his head close to hers and looked at her with a heated gaze "Au contre ma chérie" his minty breath fanned her face, his voice lowered into a whisper "this is far from over."

Kira pulled away smugly, 'That had to do the trick. Girls were always suckers for foreign languages.'

Lacus blinked but her neutral expression did not change much, Kira's grin dropped and with a curt nod he left.

When he left Lacus returned to her office, locking the door she took a deep breath and sat down at her desk, her heart was pounding. Wow! Who knew wounding his pride could be so fun! She saw when his smug, self-assured expression dropped and it made her feel like she had accomplished something.

'Maybe other girls are intimidated or fall for him like that' she pondered. Though it wouldn't be that hard to fall for him, he was extremely easy on the eyes 'I wonder what his true smile looks like?' she thought trying to imagine it but couldn't get the cold image out of her mind.

The purpose for his visit seemed quite surprising, he wanted to buy them out!

"Oh my, it seems as if we are being attacked from every angle" Lacus sighed looking out the window, there was a weird butterfly feeling in her stomach "I wonder if his mother will show up next?" she giggled but soon was laughing so hard at the image of Kira and Cagalli's mom showing up.

But when had he changed? She wondered he started out snobby cold and rude and then to the end he was…flirting with her?

"Kira Yamato is too confusing" she sighed resting her head on her desk. She felt drained "And today was supposed to be a good day" she pouted picking up her cold breakfast.

* * *

She was different Kira noted, walking out of the building the meeting replaying over in his head. Truth be told he found her surprisingly refreshing.

'She had to have been affected by me somehow' he thought then shook his head. Was HE Kira Yamato _sulking_? Over a brat?

He snorted entering his car 'No way!'

Still. Even in the face of a golden offer she refused. Now what was he going to do? He needed to knock Terminal out and re-claim PLANTs.

"Wait!" Kira exclaimed, it felt as if a light bulb had turned on over his head "That's it! I've got it" he grinned as slowly by slowly a plan formed in his head.

* * *

**Thank you for reading! ^_^ **


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you for the reviews! ^_^ **

**Please enjoy Chapter 6:**

* * *

What was supposed to be a small dinner had turned into a gathering of friends, Lacus didn't mind though. In fact she loved to have company over. The young business owner had a beautiful condominium with a gorgeous view of the downtown area. It had three bedrooms and two bathrooms and designed artfully in a style that suited Lacus, simple, stylish and chic.

"Lacus I swear your cooking taste like heaven" a man with sky blue hair moaned as he stuffed his face.

"I second that!" a man with blonde hair said.

A muffled "Me too!" came from Shinn.

The girl beamed at the compliments, her blue eyes dancing with satisfaction "Thank you."

Auel Neider and Miguel Aiman both met Lacus and the others in University, somehow they ended up in the same tutorial for Psychology 101. Miguel was the oldest in the group and was usually the mentor or older brother, while Auel was the troublemaker.

After dinner, Cagalli and Lacus milled around the kitchen while the others went to the balcony.

The pink haired girl was in a really good mood, taking a sip of the white wine Miri brought she sighed. The sweet mixture of alcohol flowed through her body leaving a light happy feeling in wake. Her mind drifted off to her encounter with Kira Yamato. Something about that meeting didn't sit right with her.

"Something the matter Lacus?" Cagalli asked from her seat on the stool by the counter.

Lacus looked at her, confusion coloured her face "What do you mean?"

"Is it about a guy?"

"What?" Lacus gasped as a blush crawled onto her cheeks "No!"

The blonde laughed "Just asking. You seem to daydream a lot more than usual. But remember our saying 'fries before guys'" she winked.

Lacus smiled weakly "Yeah" she had yet to tell Cagalli about her meeting with Kira. Perhaps she should mention it soon to the blonde or there would be hell to pay.

"So guess what happened" Miri said sidling into the seat beside Cagalli, a mischievous smile crawled onto her face.

"What?" Cagalli asked wryly, not liking the grin on Miri's face.

"Dearka Elsman happened that's what!" the auburn hair girl exclaimed.

"Huh?"

"He's a lawyer for Infinite, in fact he's the top lawyer working directly under Athrun Zala himself" Miri explained refilling her wine glass, this bottle was a good one she noted, good thing she listened to the guy at the store.

"Oh?" Lacus leaned against the counter, she was curious now.

"Apparently Zala has taken some kinda liking to our Lady Law."

Cagalli snorted crossing her arms "Tell me what girl he _hasn't_ taken a liking to?"

"How do you know?" Lacus asked.

"Dearka came to visit me in my studio and—"

Loud bouts of laughter echoed from the balcony. Lacus, Miri and Cagalli curiously looked at each other before making their way to the source of noise. They would continue their conversation later.

Stellar's face was cherry red as she doubled over laughing so hard, Shinn was gasping for breath while the blue haired boy wiped the tears streaming down his eyes.

"What happened?" Lacus asked watching as Miguel began to sober up. The four companions sitting on the balcony were more than a little 'happy', they were full blown drunk!

"Okay, okay do it again" Stellar pleaded as she tried to seal her lips to stop herself from laughing again.

Auel coughed then counted aloud "One, two, three!" he started beatboxing to the opening of Fresh Prince of Bel-air!

Shinn stood up "_Now, this is a story all about how, my life got flipped—turned upside down. And I'd like to take a minute, just sit right there. I'll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Bel-Air_"

Lacus clasped her hands happily then ran and stood by Shinn taking over the next verse "_In west Philadelphia born and raised, on the playground was where I spent most of my days_. _Chillin' out, maxin', relaxin' and all shootin' some b-ball outside of the school_!"

"_When a couple of guys who were up to no good, started making trouble in my neighbourhood_" Cagalli joined raising her wine glass.

Miri lifted her index finger and sang "_I got in one little fight and my mom got scared._"

"_She said 'You're movin' with your auntie and uncle in Bel-Air'_" The seven of them sang in union and broke down laughing unable to continue the song. It felt as if time hadn't changed, Lacus reminisced and basked in the warmth of nostalgia. It felts as if they were still in University worrying about exams or who had a crush on them or when they were free to go out oh and fighting with time to finish a project or essay which they left till the last second. Now they were all grown up.

'Age wise' Lacus thought playfully 'because we're still the same old immature children.'

Wouldn't it be nice if they could stay like this forever?

* * *

Kira Yamato grinned like a maniac as he speed walked into Athrun's office bypassing his secretary's pleas and warnings that her boss was his a bad mood.

'Not for long' the brunet smirked, throwing open his best friend's office door.

Athrun jumped at the sound of his door being ripped open "Meyrin I thought I told you—oh Kira what are you doing here? Break up with Flay yet?" he asked, his dark glare had transformed into a puzzled look. Athrun watched his friend carefully and saw a mischievous twinkle in his eye. Quickly Athrun dismissed his secretary and wondered what had the brunet so excited.

"No" Kira sat in the chair opposite Athrun and grinned ignoring the jab at his girlfriend "Remember how I said I'd take care of Clyne and Terminal?"

"Yeah" Athrun nodded, he started feeling a little lightheaded as his anger seeped away and in its place anticipation and excitement filled him "What did you do? And how could you have done it so fast? It's only been a week and a half!"

"You know me" Kira replied cheekily as he dug in his briefcase and produced a stack of papers "Have a look at this" he passed them to Athrun who greedily ran his eyes over the documents his smile growing.

Shaking his head he laughed "You sly bastard, I can't believe you did this, you fucking genius! How did you come up with this, this masterpiece? And for you to actually execute it, man Clyne must be pissed!"

Kira shrugged "You know the saying, all's fair in love and war, and this is just part one of my plan."

"Oh I can't wait for the rest" Athrun smirked.

* * *

Stellar yawned lazily as she walked to her desk, today was Lacus' turn to get breakfast. Starting up her computer she stretched, hearing a satisfying crack coming from her back she logged in and checked her emails. The elevator dinged and Stellar smiled 'Breakfast's finally here' her stomach growled at the thought.

"Where's Miss. Lacus?" a lady with blue hair rushed in, her eyes wide with horror.

Stellar scowled "Aisha, what's the deal? Why are you so frantic? Lacus will be here shortly—"

"It's an emergency!" Aisha cried.

"Emergency?" two voices echoed.

Turning Stellar saw as Lacus and Cagalli walked in, Lacus handed Stellar a coffee and a small back and smiled calmly at Aisha "Ms. Aisha why don't we go and talk in my office, then you can tell me what has you so troubled. Would you like some tea or coffee?"

"Tea please" Aisha replied nervously threading her fingers together.

"Stellar?" Lacus turned to the girl, her silent request made.

"On it" the magenta eyed girl mumbled after taking a huge bite of her bagel.

In her office the pink haired girl noted that her head of finance looked very frazzled and even had dark rings under her eyes. The normally perky, happy woman now looked tired and fatigued.

"Here!" Aisha said thrusting the papers into Lacus' arm "Look at this!"

Cagalli and Lacus glanced at each other, a frown marring their faces, quickly they scanned the contents of the document, puzzlement turned quickly into anger and disbelief.

"Oh my!" Lacus gasped quickly taking a seat, her eyes were wide with shock.

"Oh hell no!" Cagalli yelled, anger bubbling in her stomach, there was only one person capable of doing this.

'Kira' she thought darkly, then turned to Lacus, the girl had gone pale and a serious expression coloured her face.

Lacus sighed rubbing her forehead "Ms. Aisha when did you find out about this?"

"Something wasn't right yesterday as I was reviewing our quarterly reports, I was up last night doing research to make sure that this was no mistake."

"And?" Lacus asked sharply sitting up straight in her seat.

Aisha looked crestfallen and slumped her shoulders dejectedly "It is legal and within bounds, I'm sorry to say this Miss. Lacus but Archangel Systems now owns forty-seven percent of Terminal's shares."

"How could this have happened without us noticing it?" Cagalli wondered aloud re-reading the report "Even some of our most loyal shareholders sold their shares."

The trio was silent, each lost in their thoughts.

"Good morning—Lacus! What happened? You look like you saw a ghost" Shinn commented as he waltzed into the office with Stellar right behind him.

"We lost almost half of our shares to Archangel Systems" Lacus summarized quietly.

"What?" Stellar gasped.

The raven haired boy's eyes widened "You're kidding me! To Archangel?" he threw a look at Cagalli "Kira did this? But, but why? How?"

Lacus looked up at the boy "Archangel was able to persuade our shareholders to sell their shares."

"What? That bastard! What kind of game does he think he's playing?" Shinn thundered "Damn it!" he felt like hitting something.

'This is not good' Cagalli thought sifting through the documents again. There was a stony silence in the room.

"Well?"

"Huh?" Lacus looked to Shinn, who was staring directly at her.

"What now? What's our best course of action?" Shinn asked his blood red eyes reflected his anger.

Lacus saw fury and disappointment in her friends' eyes and made her decision, by her facial expression the people in the room saw focus and determination in her expression "We've worked so hard, this company was built up because of all of our hard work. I will not allow it to be taken away from us. They did this to spite us, but we will not let them get the best of us. We shall continue business as usual until we get a clearer picture of the situation."

"Yeah" Cagalli and Stellar nodded.

Shinn smiled "We're not going down without a fight."

There was a sense of renewed pride and confidence and most importantly hope.

"Right. Cagalli I want you to see if there is some kind of loophole and see what can be done about keeping our remaining shareholders, Shinn get an investigation team together and meet with our former shareholders. Ms. Aisha I would like a report of our finances from the past six months with particular focus within the weeks before and after our deal with the PLANTS. Stellar arrange a meeting with Ms. Canaver, if we were targeted who knows what they might do to get back at PLANTS. We must not lose or everything we have done up till now will be in vain, speed and stealth will be the deciding factor and key for us" Lacus commanded assigning roles to her companions.

Dismissing her team Lacus swivelled her chair around to view the city. The sight had always calmed her down and helped her think.

"But this is business," she trailed off with a sigh. Her mind flashed back to the encounter the other day "No, this was out of revenge."

_"__Au contre ma chérie, this is far from over."_

Kira Yamato.

She narrowed her eyes slightly as she suppressed a shiver remembering his words and heated gaze.

Maybe she should pay him a small visit.

* * *

Cagalli growled slapping her hand on her desk frustration radiated off of her as she barked into the phone "What do you mean he's not available? Alright then where is he? You as Kira's secretary should at least know that!"

A calm voice answered her coolly _"As his sister one would assume that you'd keep your brother under your radar. It's as I said, he came in the office for a few seconds then left without giving me any instructions, whether he came back or not I don't know because I'm buried under the mountain load of work he dumped on me."_

The blonde sighed in frustration, damn. Even when Kira was busy Murrue would still let her in, maybe she really didn't know where Kira was. Taking in a deep breath to calm herself she ran a hand through her hair "Right. Sorry Murrue, it's—it's just that I—" a beeping noise came from her computer notifying her that she had received a message. Her eyes widened when she read the message "On second thought, never mind I'll try him on his cell."

Cagalli hung up and reached for her blazer and purse, they had a new lead or another start at least.

"Of course!" she exclaimed walking out of her office "Good thinking Shinn! If I can't get a hold of Archangel might as well ring the neck of his co-partner. Athrun Zala."

"Stellar" the amber eyed blonde called out as she passed the receptionist desk "tell Lacus I'll be gone for a while."

"Lacus is gone too."

Cagalli stopped walking and looked at Stellar "That's strange. Did she have an appointment or something?"

"No she didn't say," Stellar shook her head "oh well anyway I'll take your messages for you. Go get em' Lady Law!"

* * *

**The song is the Opening for Fresh Prince of Bel-air**

**Thanks for reading! **

**~Lacus Yamato**


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you my dear readers for the kind reviews! They really make my day and motivates me to write! :) **

**Follow me on twitter for news and updates about stories ** YamatoLacus

**Enjoy Chapter 7!**

* * *

_"__We must not allow a single job to be lost. Please everyone, let's work hard to solve this problem as soon as possible. I'm counting on you."_

Aisha bit her lip 'Easier said than done' she thought as she continued crunching numbers.

_"__We must first keep our employees calm, I'm sure they'll be on the edge, wondering about their position. But we must not tell them anything until we have clear answers to the million questions I'm sure they will have."_

She spoke with such warmth and assurance, there was no doubt or hesitation nor panic in her tone. Lacus Clyne was really something, Aisha thought. Even in a tough situation like this she kept her cool. Sighing aloud Aisha paused and closed her eyes, her head was pounding "Miss. Lacus, how are you going to pull us out of this one?"

Deciding that some coffee and a bathroom break might do her some good Aisha stood up, gathering all of her notes and instructions she left her office, her mind still clouded with figures and numbers. The poor girl failed to realize a single sheet of paper loosen from the pile and land on the floor.

"Oh, what's this?" a figure emerged from around the corner and bent down to inspect the paper. An excited grin appeared "How interesting" the person smiled placing the paper back on the ground and walked away.

'Wait till Miss. Allster hears about this new development.'

* * *

Lacus stood in slight awe at the sheer size and elegance of the front main reception of Archangel Systems. It radiated wealth. Walking up to the receptionist she asked what floor Kira Yamato's office was on.

The receptionist cocked an eyebrow suspiciously "And who might you be?"

The question caught the pink haired girl off-guard making her blurt out the first thing that came to her mind "I'm his sister—Cagalli's assistant."

The receptionist blanched at Cagalli's name "Oh. I see" she said quickly.

Lacus mentally giggled and wondered what Lady Law could have possibly done to the poor receptionist. Kindly thanking her, Lacus made her way to the elevators, slipping on her game face.

Arriving at his office Lacus felt a shiver crawl up her spine. It was cold in the reception area. Cold and dark.

"Can I help you?" a voice called. Lacus scanned the area and saw a woman step outside of an office.

Clearing her throat Lacus smiled patiently at who she presumed was his personal secretary "Yes. I'd like to know when Mr. Yamato will be back."

The brunette quirked her eyebrows and threw the pink haired girl a suspicious look "I'm sorry I don't know that, may I ask what the purpose of your visit is?"

"I'd like to have a meeting with him" Lacus answered, oh dear she was in a bit of a crossroads now. She had expected Mr. Yamato to be in and she planned to confront him in his office. Now learning that he was not here, she felt her adrenaline and impulsiveness shrink a bit.

The secretary's next words deflated some of the pink haired girl' already plummeting confidence "Mr. Yamato is quite busy today."

'Busy?' Lacus thought in disbelief 'Wasn't I too busy that time?'

Squaring her shoulders Lacus looked back at the secretary "He asked for a last minute meeting, I would appreciate the same courtesy."

The secretary looked up a small smile creasing her lips, she sighed "Alright I'll see what I can do"

"That's all I ask, thank you very much" Lacus smiled. Spinning around she collided with an object and fell on the ground.

"Still have a problem with spacing out I see. You fell for me twice" came an amused voice.

"Oh my" Lacus flushed as she glanced up and saw Kira Yamato, a smug expression on his face. That alone reminded her of her mission and the reason as to why she was here in the first place. Standing up with as much grace as she could muster, Lacus stood tall and fearless in front of the CEO of Archangel.

"Mr. Yamato" Lacus greeted evenly.

Kira nodded "Miss. Clyne."

There was a cold tension in the air, the pair had locked eyes and neither willing to break it. Lacus face reflected absolutely nothing, it was impassive and neutral. Kira on the other hand had a relaxed, confident and albeit cocky stance.

Deciding to break the silence Lacus spoke up but was cut off "I—"

"Why don't we talk in my office? Would you like something to drink? Tea? I would offer coffee but" Kira pointed to the dark blue shirt he was currently wearing "since this is my favourite shirt I fear for its life—and colour."

Lacus turned pink, her eyes shifted away from Kira "Again I apologize for that. Send me the bill to get it cleaned and I shall reimburse you."

"No forget about it, anyway Ms. Murrue could you please get me some coffee and tea for Miss.—"

"Oh no thank you, I'm fine" Lacus assured turning to Murrue "really."

"Suit yourself" Kira shrugged carelessly.

"Mr. Yamato, I just need a short time with you and then I shall be gone."

The man grinned cockily "Let me assure you Miss. Clyne there's nothing short with me."

Lacus coughed as she hid the blush threatening to paint her cheeks red at his insinuation "That was quite lame Mr. Yamato."

Within an instant all his good humour had evaporated, his jaws locked together as an angry tick formed there "Let's go to my office."

Nodding her head Lacus silently followed the brunet.

'Oh my, what am I doing? Will this really solve anything? Maybe if I get him talking I'll be able to get a glimpse into his mind a possibly future plans. However he's different this time' Lacus noted 'Oh how roles have reversed' she thought sourly, entering Kira Yamato's dungeon. It was just as dark and dreary as the front, if not more! Glancing around Lacus half expected to find tools of torture and skeletons.

"Please take a seat. Now what can I do for you Miss. Clyne?"

Lacus sat down daintily crossing her legs "I take it that you haven't spoken with your sister yet."

Kira grinned leaning back in his chair his good mood had returned "No, not yet. My phone seems to be broken" he said. In reality he would gleefully hit 'ignore' every time Cagalli or Shinn's number popped up.

"Mr. Yamato, what is it that you are really doing?"

"Huh?" Kira tossed her a confused look as he sat up straight. He saw her eyes shine brilliantly and hot emotions reflected in them "I beg your pardon?"

"What do you hope to achieve by taking almost fifty percent of my company's shares? I'm sure that this is retaliation for that—"

The heavy door opened with a bang "Kira!" Flay called out rushing into the room with Murrue hot on her heels "Kira, I'm sorry! She just pushed past me and—"

"Oh for the love of God" Kira groaned.

"What are you doing here?" Flay asked her eyes zeroing in at the pink haired CEO.

"I'd like to ask you the same thing" Kira turned to Flay annoyance coloured his voice "My business has nothing to do with you."

"But Kira! Aren't I your girlfriend?"

The brunet sighed harshly, it was really Flay who used the term 'girlfriend', in reality they were just in a pure sexual relationship.

"You know my grandfather once told me, 'quiet speech is the mark of refinement'"

Flay narrowed her eyes and balled her hands into fists "Why you bitc—"

Lacus frowned "Oh my, is that the only word in your vocabulary?"

"Forget about her, Miss. Clyne," Kira waved his hand to get back Lacus' attention "shall we continue? Of course I would love to have dinner with you."

"_What!_" Lacus and Flay exclaimed at the same time.

Kira smirked and winked at Lacus "I'll pick you up this Friday at seven."

"Don't ignore me!" Flay growled strutting beside Kira.

"Flay" Kira's voice lowered and turned menacing "I said leave. Now" he ordered.

Lacus felt the temperature in the room turn as cold as Antarctica, turning to the red head she felt a twinge of sympathy. Standing up Lacus tossed him a glare and marched towards the exit, stopping by the door she turned back to face him calmly "A word of advice Mr. Yamato: if you play with fire, you're bound to get burned" and with that Lacus Clyne elegantly and gracefully parted from the office of the all-powerful Kira Yamato, masterfully leaving him with a dumbstruck expression.

And certainly nothing short of a problem in his pants.

* * *

"Zala!" a voice thundered making Athrun flinched, it sounded like his mother.

The door opened and Athrun smirked "Well look who it is, finally coming to take my number?"

"Why would you do this?" her voice sliced through his thoughts "Why are you trying to take over my company?" Cagalli demanded entering his office. .

"Company? What company? I thought you said you were a lawyer?"

Cagalli released a harsh breath, "Terminal Inc.! I am a lawyer for Terminal Inc. and your little game with my brother has gone far enough!"

The navy haired lad cocked his in confusion "Brother?"

"Kira Yamato is my twin."

"Twin?" he echoed.

Well this was news to Athrun.

Cagalli snorted "It's amazing how a twat like you became a CEO."

"Now, now Miss. Athha, there's no need—"

"No need? Do you realize what you and that, that" Cagalli flashed her eyes to the ceiling as if the perfect word would be there "idiot I call brother has done? Do you really understand the magnitude of this situation?"

"This situation? If I remember clearly you guys were the one who started this! The PLANTS deal was ours!"

Cagalli shift her weight to her left leg and crossed her arms, amber eyes ablaze "Oh boohoo cry me a river, listen as a lawyer here's the _best _advice I can give you: build a bridge and get over it! Do you ever listen to yourself? You sound like a three year old!"

"We worked hard on that deal!"

"We did too!"

"Yeah but you guys did it behind our backs!"

"Who the hell are you to me?"

"Behind Kira's back!"

"He never told me anything about going after PLANTS!"

Athrun took in a deep breath "And would that have stopped you guys from dealing with PLANTS?"

"Know what? Screw you I'm done! Take this as a warning Zala, we won't back down!" spinning on her heels Cagalli marched out of his office.

"Anytime!" Athrun laughed calling after her.

'Ha! Screw me? She wishes! That's it' Athrun thought a malice grin laced his face He'd play around with this girl, gain her trust and then dump her as Terminal fell. 'She and Kira must not be that close because he never talks about her.'

* * *

"Damn it!" Shinn cursed as he rode the elevator up "Why isn't she picking up?" he said redialing Cagalli's number only to reach her voicemail yet again. The elevator dinged and he stepped out.

"Shinn you're back!" Stellar greeted him "Any news?"

"Yes, Stellar where are Lacus and Cagalli?"

"Lacus has barricaded herself in her office, apparently her meeting with the CEO of Archangel didn't go so well."

"She met with Kira? Alone?" Shinn asked incredulously, he felt his headache increase tenfold "And Cagalli?"

"She went to meet with Athrun Zala" Stellar answered.

Shinn felt as if his head was going to explode.

'Why, why, why! I take my eyes off these two for a minute and—'

"Shinn?"

Glancing back at Stellar the raven haired boy saw a worried look on her face, smiling weakly Shinn reached over and patted her head "Don't worry Stellar, it's going to be alright" and with that he left leaving Stellar alone in the office once again.

Reaching up Stellar touched the spot where Shinn's hand was _'It's going to be alright'_, she sighed then turned to her computer "I hope you're right Shinn."

* * *

Cagalli sat in a quaint, cozy café trying to cool her head, but every time she thought about the emerald eyed man her blood would boil. 'What an infuriating man' she sniffed, checking the time on her watch. It was half past two and she was already burnt out.

"Hey there" Athrun drawled walking up to her and sent the blonde a saucy grin to which she blanched "Whatcha doin?"

"Oh no" Cagalli hissed "Not him" how did he find her? 'Must be one of those closet deranged stalkers' the blonde thought.

Athrun Zala was the last person she needed to see.

Or maybe…? Nah she'd get charged with assault from trying to grind in face into the ground. But if it was consensual…

"I want to get to know you better" Athrun stated taking a seat at the table.

"No" Cagalli replied, ignoring him and going back to her phone.

Athrun was quiet as he observed the woman in front of him. She looked stressed to the max. He wondered what her real role was in Terminal, maybe he could coax her into leaving Terminal and coming to work for him.

"I'm sorry but you know that is how business is."

Cagalli's jaw clenched and tightened with rage. The nerve of this man! She could see right through that sorry façade.

"You know you have beautiful eyes, they hold the same colour, beauty and intensity as the sky at dawn."

The blonde acted like she didn't hear him.

"Can we play twenty questions?"

"No" the blonde answered curtly.

"Can I ask you _a_ question?"

"No."

Athrun quirked his eyebrows and rested his elbows on the table "Is that all you know how to say?"

Cagalli was about to burst a vein, and maybe commit murder.

"There you are, I was starting to get worried—"

Cagalli gasped in surprise "Shinn! What, what are you doing here?"

"I'm here to take you home" he said gently tugging at her elbow. The blonde threw her cousin a grateful albeit tired smile and allowed him to guide her out of the café and away from the navy haired playboy.

"Damn it!" Athrun cursed 'She already has a boyfriend! No, that can't be true they looked familiar.'

Pulling out his phone Athrun sent a quick message to his best friend, maybe he could clear up some of this confusion.

* * *

**Sorry for taking so long!**

**~Lacus Yamato**


End file.
